Update: Court Enters
Judgment in Favor of Class. On January
6, 2016, the Court entered a default
judgment against Global College of Natural
Medicine and owner Heather Johnstone and in
favor of class members in the amount of
$1.42 million. A copy of the judgment can be
found
here. The Court stated in its 42-page
opinion and order that “Plaintiff has
doggedly and thoroughly followed the
procedures required to secure a default
judgment.” The opinion and order can be
found
here. The Court also noted in its
opinion that “Plaintiff and the other class
members have been waiting three years for
relief in this matter given that Defendants
never refunded the pre-paid tuition received
from class members after GCNM closed.
Defendants, meanwhile, have consistently
failed to respond to any filings in this
case, prolonging its litigation.”

It is presently not known whether GCNM and
Johnstone have assets available to satisfy
the judgment and compensate class members.
Plaintiff’s counsel will be attempting to
identify and recover assets in the next
phase of the litigation. In the event that
assets are recovered, the Court and class
members will be provided with notification.
Updates will be posted to this website in
the event of the recovery of assets. At the
present time, class members do not need to
take any action to be eligible to make a
claim for compensation in the event that
assets are recovered.

Entry of the default judgment follows the
Court’s certification of the case as a class
action on April 10, 2015. The case was
certified as a class action on behalf of
students enrolled at GCNM at the time the
school closed. A copy of the Court’s Class
Certification Order can be found
here. The Court also ordered a class
notice to be sent to class members by mail.
On May 19, 2015, the Court approved a class
notice which explains what the class action
means for class members and how the class
action may affect their rights. The Class
Notice was mailed to the addresses of more
than 1,400 former students. A copy of the
Class Notice can be found
here.

In
February 2013, a class action lawsuit was filed in the
United States District Court for the Eastern District of
Michigan in Detroit, seeking recoveries on behalf of
thousands of adults enrolled in prepaid, self-paced
distance education programs at Global College of Natural
Medicine, Inc.. The lawsuit comes in the wake of GCNM's
announcement in November 2012 that it was suddenly
closing the school and its self-paced distance education
programs after many years of operation.

The lawsuit alleges that at the time of the closing,
GCNM had already collected millions of dollars in
tuition from Plaintiffs and a class of similarly
situated persons for pre-paid programs that GCNM stopped
providing. After the abrupt termination of its
self-paced distance education programs, GCNM failed to
refund tuition, according to the lawsuit.

Plaintiffs' counsel in the lawsuit are Thomas H. Howlett
and Dean M. Googasian of The Googasian Firm, P.C., who
may be contacted by calling 1 877 540 8333, or by
clicking here or sending
an e mail to
GCNMlawsuit@googasian.com.

Defendants in the lawsuit are GCNM and Heather Johnstone,
who is identified as director, owner, chief executive
officer and chief operating officer of GCNM.

According to the lawsuit, GCNM marketed its self-paced
programs as affording students the ability to learn and
pursue degree and certificate programs with flexibility
as to the time within which they were completed. But the
sudden closure of GCNM precludes these students from
completing the self-paced distance education programs
for which they had paid and devoted considerable time
and effort, the lawsuit alleges.

If you have a concern about experiences with GCNM, click
here to share these
concerns.

The lawsuit asserts breach of fiduciary duty,
negligence, and other claims, and seeks compensation for
the tuition amounts paid for programs that are no longer
available and for Plaintiffs' loss of time and
opportunity, among other damages. A copy of the lawsuit
can be found by clicking
here.